A Day At The Park
by StarGlider
Summary: Team Rocket spends the day at an amusement park, and interesting things happen. Shippy...
1. Morning

A Day At The Park  
~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*  
  
"They're coming," Jessie whispered to her partners as she peered through the bushes.  
  
"Ooh," James said softly, "in our places!"  
  
Meowth proceeded to prepare himself to pounce from behind the bushes, ready for his cue. "Here we go again."  
  
The three twerps walked unassumingly down the path. Ash's Pikachu walked at his heels, and Misty carried the egg Pokemon, Togepi, in her arms. Brock was walking just behind.  
  
"3, 2, 1..." Jessie whispered to her companions.  
  
"Prepare for trouble!"  
  
"And make it double!"  
  
Jessie and James jumped out from their hiding places and into the path, blocking the three kids. The twerps all rolled their eyes at once.  
  
"To protect the world from devastation!"  
  
"To unite all peoples within our nation!"  
  
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"  
  
"To extend our reach to the—"  
  
Before James could finish his sentence, Ash said, nonchalantly, "Pikachu. Thundershock."  
  
"Piiiiiii-kaaa!!"  
  
In a flash of bluish-white, Jessie and James were shocked by the lightning, the impact hurling them up into the air over the trees.  
  
"...Team Rocket's blasting off again..."  
  
The two landed hard, Jessie on top of James, in the shallows of a lake.  
  
"Ugh!! Get me outta this! Ah, my hair...I can't get it wet!" Jessie groaned, standing up on James' back.  
  
"Here..." said James, managing to get up and hold onto Jessie at the same time. He then proceeded to carry her to shore, setting her back on dry land.  
  
"Uh...I'm a little wet from that splash, but at least my uniform's not stained." She glanced at James, who had mud-prints on his back from Jessie's boots.  
  
"Oh...oh well," Jessie shrugged. "Well, we've failed once again, and we're blasting off faster, too. We were only there for about 20 seconds and those twerps didn't even have the decency to let us finish our motto!" Jessie looked biffed, and folded her arms.  
  
"Yeah, no kidding." James was wringing water out of his uniform. "But hey—I didn't feel like fighting them today anyway. It's getting old—day after day, it's 'Prepare for trouble,' and 'Hand over that Pikachu', or whatever, and it never works."   
  
"Well, at *least* we're persistent," Jessie told him, wiping a hair from her eyes. "But...I don't want to try and find those brats again today. I don't want to end up getting shocked another time and end up landing in a pile of manure or something. Not today."  
  
James smiled. "Not today? How about tomorrow, then? Would that be better?" Jessie sighed at him and shook her head.  
  
"Well, then," James asked, sitting down on the ground, "what should we do today?" He began to dump the lake water out of his boots.  
  
"Well...I dunno."  
  
"Hey, you guys, dere you are! Ya blasted off without me!" It was Meowth.  
  
"Well, I'm sure you feel left out, Meowth, and you sure missed out when that Pikachu managed not to shock you," said James sarcastically as he put his boots back on.   
  
"Hmph." Meowth folded his arms.  
  
"Well, are we just going to sit here all day, or what?" Jessie asked.  
  
"Well, you said we were done working for the day—you know, no more twerps? Let's just...I dunno, go for a walk," James offered.  
  
Jessie's face twisted into an uninterested expression. "Umm...well..."  
  
"Ok, Ok..." James said, rolling his eyes.  
  
"Well," Jessie began, "I guess we could. . .do our hair and nails! Mine could use some polish, and I won't even *start* with my hair..."  
  
"Thank goodness," James muttered to Meowth, who snickered.  
  
"What?!"  
  
"Nothing..."  
  
"Well, you guys, we could always go hang out over there—" Meowth pointed off to a place just up the lake...swirling, spiraling shapes and a huge wheel, among other oddly shaped structures, reached high above the ground.  
  
"Ah...amusement park?" Jessie and James said at once.  
  
"Of course!" Jessie cried out, "Why didn't we see that when we were flying through the air?!"  
  
"Well, what are we waiting for?" James asked his companions, "Let's go for it."   
  
"Sure, why not?" Jessie agreed. "We'll go."  
  
The three walked excitedly down the lakeside.  
  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~   
  
  
"Happy Land?" James read from the huge sign above the entrance, "What kind of a name is *that* for an amusement park?"  
  
Jessie shrugged. "Hey, at least the admission is pretty cheap." She patted her sides. "Hey, who has the money?"  
  
James reached into his pocket, taking from it a brown blob—a wallet.  
  
"Uh...the cash is a bit soggy..." he said, handing Jessie some of the wet money.  
  
"Oh well, money's money." She and her companions reached the front of the line, and Jessie paid.  
  
"Ooh, we get a stamp!" James said as they proceeded through the front gate. A lady stamped their hands and they entered the park.  
  
"What's it say?" James asked, squinting at his hand. "The 'Barf Bucket'? Um..."  
  
"It's just a stamp, James," Jessie said. "It's probably the name of a ride. Parks like this do that...probably to advertise their least popular rides."  
  
"I can unda'stand why it's unpopular just from da name," Meowth commented.  
  
Jessie opened a park map that she had picked up at the entrance. "So, what first?" James and Meowth looked over her shoulder.  
  
"Ooh, there!" James cried, pointing on the map.  
  
"The bathroom?" asked Jessie, looking concerned. "Already?!"  
  
"Oh, I mean, right next to it." He pointed again.  
  
"Oh. The restaurant. That's way better, James. We should stuff our faces and then blow chunks everywhere on all the rides we go on." She crammed the map into the fair-sized bag they had brought, clearly annoyed.  
  
"Well, if you're gonna get sick on the rides, you might as well be able to relieve yourself by throwing up," James offered.  
  
Jessie winced at James. "Well, I'm not sitting by *you* when we ride the 'Barf Bucket'."  
  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
  
"So, what should we go on now?" James asked. He had a puff of cotton candy in one hand and a cup of soda in the other.  
  
"This one looks fun," said Meowth, waving to his right.  
  
James and Jessie looked over. "The 'Spiral Coaster', eh?" asked Jessie. "Hey, sure, why not?"  
  
"You know, wouldn't it be wiser to start off small...you know, go on a less turbulent ride and work our way up from there?" James suggested, a bit urgently.  
  
"Oh, so in other words, you're scared," Jessie declared matter-of-factly.  
  
"No, really—you should get used to having your body hurled around little by little until you're ready for the big roller coasters," James articulated.   
  
"Naw—start off like you're going swimming," Meowth said. "Jump right in da wadda! Sure, it might be cold for a few seconds, but you'll get used 'ta it in no time!"  
  
"Yeah," Jessie said, "let's just do it!"  
  
"Well...Ok," James agreed.  
  
The three companions got into the line.  
  
"And ba'sides," Meowth said, "this ride has a pretty short line compared to some of the newer rides."  
  
James finished off his cotton candy and pop, and threw the remaining trash to the side of the path.  
  
"From food to vomit in 5.2 seconds," Jessie said, pointing to James' stomach. "You really shouldn't have eaten that before going on this ride."  
  
James shrugged. "It wasn't my idea to go on this first. I'd just assume be on a kiddie ride right now."  
  
The line proceeded quite quickly, and soon they were ready to board the roller coaster.  
  
"Two to a row, one to each seat, please do not extend your arms outside your car..." A voice came over the loud speaker.  
  
Jessie and James sat together, Meowth in the row behind them.  
  
They heard a beep, and their car lurched forward. It proceeded slowly up a high slant of track.  
  
"Ya know what?" James asked Jessie, "The most nerve-wracking part of a roller coaster is when you're going up like this , I mean, nothing's happened yet, but you _know_ it's about to, so you get all anxious because you're not quite sure what's gonna happen when you reach the top 'cause it's gotta be a big drop or something but you're not sure *how* big, or *how* scary or *how* sharp the drop and turns will be, and—"  
  
"James..." Jessie interrupted, "I know you're scared. You can stop talking in one big sentence now."  
  
"Oh. Sorr--y!"  
  
The car suddenly shot downward, twisting and turning as the actual ride started.  
  
About 45 seconds later, the car pulled back into the loading area. Jessie, James and Meowth got off, stumbling to the general direction of the exit.  
  
None of them were able to speak, and it was clear that they were all suffering from extreme nausea (especially James, who was obviously trying very hard not to hurl). Jessie groaned.  
  
"J...J...James...I don't want to admit that...you were right about what you said before this ride but...let's go find a nice kiddie ride while we recover from this one."  
  
James forced a smile, as if to say "I told you so."  
  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~   
  
  
After a little while of somewhat restful recuperation, Jessie, James and Meowth were again wondering what to do.  
  
"Let's just take the Sky Ride and see what looks good from above," James suggested.  
  
"Works for me," said Jessie. Meowth nodded.  
  
They made their way to where people were being loaded onto the ride.  
  
People in line were snaked round a rather large garden of marigolds as they waited to the ride. Team Rocket cut into the line in front of a group of ditzy teenage girls who were busy chatting to paying attention.   
  
"I thought you were saying earlier that the older rides had shorter lines," James said. "This one could have easily been around for 30 years!"  
  
"I guess everyone has the same brilliant idea as us," Jessie replied, her voice tainted with sarcasm.  
  
"Must be," James said. He sat down on the edge of the garden, but as he did the line began to move.  
  
Eventually, the three reached the head of the line. They walked out to where they would be loaded onto a bench, and they stood there, waiting.  
  
"Uh, excuse me, but only two to a bench." The voice belonged to an angry looking, pimply faced teenage employee. "One of you has to go on a different one."  
  
Jessie, James and Meowth looked at each other.  
  
"Aw, I'll just go on anudda one," Meowth said, "it doesn't really madda." He walked off to the side.  
  
Before they could even say anything about it, James and Jessie were swiftly being loaded onto a bench.  
  
"Hi-welcome-to-the-sky-ride-no-spitting-or-throwing-objects-do-not-rock-the-bench- back-and-forth-enjoy-your-ride." The pimple-faced guy talked quickly as he lowered their safety bar, and they rose up slowly over the marigolds.  
  
James rested his elbows on the bar. "I thought once that it might be fun to work at a place like this, but that guy just changed my mind."  
  
The ride slowly progressed. Other benches passed by Jessie and James', some with single riders, but most were occupied by cheesey couples who were cuddling and hugging sweetly.  
  
James winced. He looked over at Jessie, who also seemed disgusted.  
  
Passing couples shot superior glances at James and Jessie as they went by, their arms around their sweetheart. It was almost like they were showing off, saying "Look at me! I'm better than you!"  
  
"Hmph," James murmured to Jessie, "what do they think they're doing?"  
  
"It can't last like this through the whole ride," Jessie assured him. "Can it?"  
  
But after several more couples passed, James couldn't stand it.  
  
"That's *it*!" he said, annoyed, "They think they're so high and mighty with their corny, lovey-dovey stunts! I'm not gonna just sit here and take it."  
  
Jessie bit her lip.  
  
"Come on," James encouraged, "let's give *them* something to stare at!"  
  
"I don't like where this is going," Jessie said.  
  
"No, no—we'll just pretend to be making out or something. Come _on_-- just imagine the looks on their faces!" He was smiling wildly.  
  
"James, it's not like you to be so...bold," Jessie said, "but when you put it that way...I kinda like the idea. Fine." Jessie submitted.   
  
James leaned over to her, putting his arms around her waist and moving his face right up to hers. They began making kissy noises, and Jessie caressed James' back with both hands as they lay back in the seat.  
  
People passing were now looking extremely disgusted and sickened, and Jessie and James were, in the midst of their mock make-out, busy trying to hide the fit of laughter that was getting the better of them.  
  
"We're *so* pathetic, you know that? This defines the word 'distasteful'," Jessie whispered as she held him tighter.  
  
"Yeah, but it's so much funner this way." James told her, smiling.  
  
The bench began to lower, and James got off of Jessie. They were still giggling when they got off the ride.  
  
As they waited by the turnstyle, Meowth hopped off of his bench and joined his companions.  
  
"So—which ride looked good ta you guys?" Meowth asked.  
  
"Oh." James smiled as Jessie. "I guess we weren't really paying attention."  
  
The two busted up laughing.  
  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~   
  
  
"Mmm...frozen lemonade..." James licked his lips as the icy beverage was passed to him over the counter. "Want one, Jess? Meowth?"  
  
"Naw...it'll give me a headache," Jessie said, picking up a plastic spork and examining it.  
  
"Aw, c'mon. I'm buying you one, anyway. Meowth?"  
  
"Sure, I guess."  
  
James bought two more lemonades and handed them to his friends. "Seriously—they're the best." They seated themselves at a shaded table.  
  
"I guess that these things must be more economical to make, ya know, two in one," Jessie mused, the spork still in hand.  
  
"Hence the name," James said in between sips, "spoon plus fork equals spork."  
  
"Yeah. But the thing is, they're pretty useless. It's more than a spoon than a fork, and it's so dull, you can't use it as a weapon. You can barely stab anything with it at all, including food." Jessie dropped the spork on the table, and pressed her finger on the scoop to make it do a flip.  
  
"Drink your $3 lemonade, already," James nudged. "Geez, you'd rather play with a plastic eating utensil than savor frozen-lemony-goodness."   
  
Jessie took a sip. "Mm...this is pretty good."  
  
"Told ya. Hey, Meowth—how's yours?"  
  
The cat winced. "I'd radda have a saucer of milk or somthin',"  
  
"Aw, whatever." James continued to sip.  
  
The Rockets finished their lemonade and began walking again.  
  
"I think these places make more money on food than anything," Jessie said. "I mean, everything here is at least $2 overpriced."   
  
"Anyway, what now?" Meowth asked, "We didn't pay dat admission fee ta go on a couple of rides and drink overpriced lemonade."  
  
"We could go on the 'Barf Bucket'," James suggested. Jessie bopped him on the head.  
  
"What? We seriously could!" James said defensively.  
  
"James, I think that maybe that stamp on your hand is going to your head," Jessie said. "The 'Barf Bucket' isn't worth a second of our time."  
  
"Fine...fine..." James rolled his eyes.  
  
The three Rockets left the eating area and joined the crowd of moving people in the midway.  
  
"Hey, you look like you'd like to play a game of Ring Toss! You could win a huge prize if you just get your ring to land on a red bottle! Step right up!" An employee proceeded to coax them with a giant elephant plush.  
  
"Naw, maybe later," Jessie brushed her off.  
  
"Aw, come on, don't think you have what it takes?" the employee went on, trying to lure her in.  
  
"Oh, yeah, that's it," Jessie replied sarcastically, "I don't have the skills to throw a loop around a bottle."  
  
"Well it would appear to be that way," said the employee casually.  
  
Jessie fumed. "Are you kidding?! You think I can't do it or something? You think I can't win a dumb game like this?"  
  
The employee shrugged. "How should I know? I kinda doubt it, though..."  
  
"Well you *should* know!! James, gimme a dollar!"  
  
"But Jess, it's—"  
  
"Gimme!!!"  
  
James complied, giving her a bill.  
  
Jessie walked up to the stand, payed, and was given two rings by the employee.  
  
Jessie tossed the first one; missed, cursed softly, and threw the next one, again missing.  
  
"Crap! No, really, I'm just warming up! I can do this..." Jessie insisted. "One more dollar!"  
  
James found no point in objecting, so he gave her another dollar.  
  
"Well, *dis* could take a while," Meowth huffed.  
  
"Yeah, and she said the 'Barf Bucket' wasn't worth our time." James folded his arms and prepared to hand Jessie another dollar.  
  
"Aw...dammit! No, really—just *one* more..."  
  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~   
  
  
With a huge plush in hand (and $20 less in their wallet), Jessie, James and Meowth strolled down the midway in the afternoon sun.  
  
"So, Jess, what should we do with your new 'friend'?" James implored.  
  
"Whaddaya mean?" Jessie asked, hugging the bulky elephant to her side.  
  
"Well, you can't take it on the rides with you," James told her.  
  
"I suppose you have a point. Look over there: lockers."  
  
They stepped over to the wall of lockers and looked over them.  
  
"Dis one doesn't lock...see, it opens and ya don't have ta put money in it!" Meowth opened the locker.  
  
"Hm...it's the biggest size...though it'll still be a tight squeeze," James said.  
  
Jessie kneeled by the locker and shoved the plush inside.  
  
"Hope it closes," she said. She kicked the door, and with a couple of tries, it shut tight.  
  
"Well, with that out of the way and a water park right over there," James said, "we might as well go swimming."  
  
"We'll have to shove more in the locker, but we can manage it, I think," Jessie said thoughtfully. "Sure, let's get changed." She took her swim wear from the bag and headed for the ladies' room.  
  
"Hey, waidda minute! I'm not goin' swimmin'! You guys can count me out," Meowth said.  
  
"Where will you go?" asked James.  
  
"I guess I'll go ta da arcade. Meet me dere."  
  
"Sure...here." James handed Meowth a few dollars and the two split up.  
  
About 4 minute later, James emerged from the men's room in blue swim trunks, and tried to stuff his clothes into the locker with the plush.  
  
By the time he had succeeded, Jessie came out, wearing a purple bikini, and joined James.  
  
"If only there were more broken lockers," Jessie sighed. She jammed her clothes in as well and banged the door shut.  
  
James suddenly seemed to realize something. "You know, just hours ago you were so concerned about getting your hair wet, but now you're ready to go swimming."  
  
"I guess it's the fact that I'm going swimming willingly," Jessie answered, "and plus, I think I have a can of hair spray in that bag."  
  
James smirked.   
  
They entered the water park (aptly named 'Happy Land Bay') and looked around the new area.   
  
"This place is pretty big," Jessie declared, stating the obvious.  
  
"I guess we should just head one direction and go on from there," decided James. "Over there is the kiddie pools, so...let's go to the other side—the slides. If you're up to it, of course."  
  
Jessie smiled. "You sure you don't want to play in the kiddie pools?" she asked playfully.  
  
"I think I'll pass...I can handle something more intense now, I think." James took Jessie by the hand and they walked together over the puddle-covered ground in the direction of the water slides.  
  
"Which one?" asked James when they had reached the water slides.  
  
"Hm, toughie," replied Jessie. "But I can settle the matter in just a couple minutes. Einie, meenie, mienie, moe..."  
  
Several minutes did pass, and Jessie was still deciphering between the slides.  
  
"...and you are not it!" she finished at last. "Ok, I eliminated all but...this one." She pointed to a large slide several yards away that emptied into pools all the way down it.  
  
"Ok," James said, "We'll go on that one first."  
  
They walked up to the stairs where the entrance was, and James surveyed the sign.  
  
"We'll need inner tubes," James told Jessie after looking it over a moment.  
  
Jessie glanced out over the park. "They're selling them over there for $2 each...but...look, over there—someone left some by those lounge chairs." Jessie left James for a minute and retrieved two of the deserted inner tubes.  
  
"Hey, good deal," James commented as he took one.  
  
They made their way up the stairs, in a bit of a hurry.  
  
"Aie!!" Jessie cried out, abruptly slipping on the slick stairs and nearly falling backwards onto her head. James quickly and instinctively reacted by seizing her by the waist and pulling her up again.  
  
"Holy...wow, thanks," she said as breath returned to her. "It was like I saw my life flashing before my eyes..."  
  
"You mean, you saw all of our failures play over in your mind?" James asked teasingly. "Scary."  
  
"Heh heh. Come on, let's get up there before I fall over the edge of the stairs to my death or something."  
  
James still held his hand out behind her waist as they reached the line's end. When Jessie glanced back at him questioningly, he told her, "Just in case you, ya know, *slip* again."  
  
Jessie sighed. "Sure, James. How do I put up with you? Shouldn't I have hit you over the head by now for that kind of thing by now?"  
  
"I don't know...should you have?"  
  
"Well...I guess I'm not in the mood." This made James's face light up just a little.  
  
They waited for about 15 minutes until they reached the very top of the tower.  
  
"Well, here it is, the moment of truth," James said to Jessie as he looked over the slide. "You ready?"  
  
"Only if you are," Jessie replied, also getting a closer look at what they were in for.  
  
"I guess I'm ready enough," he told her.  
  
They grew closer and closer to the head of the line.  
  
"Which of us goes first?" asked Jessie.  
  
"Ah, you can," James told her.  
  
"No...why don't you, come to think of it..." Jessie insisted.  
  
"Well, why don't we just do it at the same time?" James proposed, trying to put the matter to rest.  
  
"Can we?"  
  
"Sure! Aren't they?" James gestured to another couple who were clinging to the handles of each other's inner tubes as they whipped down the slide.  
  
"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt."  
  
James guided Jessie to the slide's loading area, as it was their turn to go down. They both occupied their tubes and held onto the handle of the other's as well as their own.  
  
"Go," directed an employee, and Jessie and James were pushed off onto the slide.  
  
"Wheee!" James cried as they slid, twisting and turning, down the half-tube water slide.  
  
"Don't let go of me!" Jessie shouted out to him.  
  
The slide emptied into a small pool, and it was hard to stay in the inner tubes since the force of the splash nearly sent Jessie and James' tubes capsizing. The impact, however, caused James to lose his grip on Jessie's inner tube, and he went sailing right by her and toward to next extent of slide without her.  
  
"Ahhh! James, save me!" she cried out teasingly.  
  
"Don't worry, Jess—I'll rescue you!" James played along with her facetious behavior, gripping the edge of the slide before he was forced down, and waiting for Jessie to pass by. When she did, he grabbed onto one of the handles on her tube and was lurched ahead with it.  
  
"Oh, my hero," Jessie said as she began to laugh.  
  
When they reached the next pool, James was quite suddenly thrown from his inner tube and into the water, where he spun around under the current until he was oriented enough to find the surface. He clung onto Jessie's tube, but his was nowhere in sight.  
  
"Can we share?!" James sputtered, hanging onto Jessie's tube for dear life.  
  
Jessie rolled her eyes, but still reached to him, and he climbed into her lap.  
  
"I'm kinda liking this," he told her as they whipped down the slide again. They held each other and the handles as they entered the next pool, and, miraculously, neither fell out.  
  
"Maybe we should've started out like this. Then we wouldn't have fallen out at all and had all this trouble," James said. But just as he had spoken, the slide ended and both of them were hurled out of the tube and into a large pool.  
  
James emerged from the water first, coughing and gurgling, and then pulled Jessie up to the surface. She coughed, too, then began to laugh.  
  
"Was that fun or what?!" James asked of her as they splashed over to the exit.  
  
"Well, I'm sure it was funner the way *we* did it," she told him.  
  
He laughed, too, and held onto her as they stepped out of the pool.  
  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
  



	2. Afternoon

  
  
Jessie and James remained at the water park for a while longer until they knew that there was much more to do, and Meowth was probably waiting for them. On top of that, they were starving and it was becoming late afternoon, so they soon saw fit to dry off and get dressed.  
  
  
  
Jessie and James met at their locker, dressed and ready (hair spray and all, for Jessie) and wandered off into the crowd again in search of the arcade.  
  
"I wonder if Meowth got bored of the arcade while waiting for us," James said. "Serves him right, though—he wouldn't even go swimming with us!"  
  
"At least *he* didn't get sunburned," said Jessie. Her shoulders were what had been burned worst, though her face had a pinkish tint from the sun.  
  
"Ah, there it is! Fun Time arcade." James was pointing to a good-sized building with a fountain decorating the front of it. "I hope he stayed there, 'cause I don't want to go searching for him all over the park!"  
  
James and Jessie entered, where rows of games stretched out before them. They began to search the aisles for their Pokemon friend.   
  
They soon reached the west wall of the arcade and turned into another aisle.  
  
"Hey, there he is," said James suddenly. Sure enough, there was Meowth, quite engulfed in a game of Bust-A-Move.   
  
Jessie approached the cat, James by side. "Sorry to disturb you, but we're back. Let's go." She tapped him on the shoulder.  
  
"Ah, hey, ya messed me up! Red on green...ah, dere goes my perfect setup! And now da screen's lowerin'..."  
  
Meowth cursed as 'Game Over' flashed over his screen.  
  
"Can we go now?" Jessie asked dully.  
  
"Ah, ok den. Let's gettoutta here."  
  
"I'm sure you're hungry," James spoke up.  
  
"Yeah, come 'ta tink of it," responded Meowth.  
  
"I'm getting hungry too," Jessie told them as they exited the arcade. "Where can we get some actual food around here?"  
  
James whipped out the wallet and peeked into it, thumbing through the money within.   
  
"We're a bit low on cash," James reported. "Ok, *very* low. That elephant may have costs us a meal—"  
  
"Oh, hush," Jessie commanded her partner, jabbing him softly in the arm.  
  
"So, I guess dat means no dinna?" Meowth asked in a downhearted way.  
  
"Let's just not talk about it...come on, let's at least do something to keep our minds off of food," Jessie advised.  
  
"Sure," James agreed. The three Rockets strode away from the arcade and down the cement walkway.  
  
"I don't think we've looked down this way yet," said Jessie. They were entering an area of ramadas and pavilions, and the smell of food loomed in the air.  
  
"Ah, just work parties and family reunions..." James told her nonchalantly. "Nothing too interesting."  
  
"Oh, but they're eating," Jessie said, leaning on a wooden fence and watching a group of people who were having a barbeque. "I wish I were them right now..." Jessie sighed and began to turn back toward the midway. "I can't stand the smell of food anymore. I'm outta here."  
  
James thought a moment, then stopped her. "Wait a sec...I think I've got an idea."  
  
"Oh, really?" Jessie said, turning to him, "Isn't that my job?"  
  
"No, *really* — I think we _can_ be them!"  
  
"...Hm?"  
  
"Come here, I'll show you."  
  
James led Jessie and Meowth to a pavilion where a family reunion was obviously being held. A table of food lay among many other tables of chatting people, and little children and adults alike were eating blissfully from plates loaded with food.  
  
"Here we are," James muttered to his partners. "Why don't we just join this family for dinner?"  
  
"Ya 'tink dey won't no'dice?" Meowth asked, licking his chops.  
  
"Who cares? What can they do? Besides— doesn't everyone want a few members of Team Rocket in their family?"  
  
Jessie smiled at him. "I never knew you were so devious, James."  
  
"Come on...der's tons'a food just waitn' ta be eaten!" Meowth cried happily.  
  
The made their way to the table.  
  
  
"Excuse me...do I know you?" An older lady had come up from them, and her voice was full of suspicion.   
  
James looked a tad concerned for a moment, than he suddenly spoke up.  
  
"Why....Darla!" he said, reading the lady's name tag, "I can't believe you don' remember us! I'm your great aunt's niece's nephew's grandma's uncle's son's daughter's cousin's son! Come on, you gotta know me!"  
  
"Er, well..."  
  
"And, she's your father's mother's aunt's cousin's daughter-in-law's niece's mother's father's niece," James clarified, pointing to Jessie, and winking at her. A small smile took over her lips.  
  
The lady, Darla, blinked, and looked plainly baffled. But, nonetheless, she said, "Oh, why, of course! I'm so....so sorry, my...my mind must have slipped or something. Go on and eat before all that food is gone!" She forced a nervous smile. "Great to see you kids again....you go on ahead and eat." She gave James a pat on the back and smiled again.  
  
James nodded, and smiled at Jessie as the women left.  
  
"Well, maybe you're more clever than I ever thought you were," Jessie told James in a low voice as she began to fill a plate.  
  
"Yeah, well...I think I'm a bit smarter than you give me credit for."  
  
Jessie looked up at him a moment, as if to speak, then stopped herself and returned to her plate.  
  
"I'm just glad 'ya got us some food! I woulda starved if I hadn't eaten somthin' soon!" The cat was already eating, putting into his mouth whatever he could get his paws on.  
  
After they had all packed their plates, they walked over to a vacant tree to eat their meal in peaceful shade.  
  
"Aw, family reunions..." James said in a reminiscent way. "I never liked them, but that's just because my family reunions were just a bunch of rich snobs swapping recipes for caviar." He smirked, and ate a forkfull of food. "But *this*...this is a real family reunion. Five different kinds of potato salad...mmmmm, and not to mention bowl after bowl of pasta salad....and who could forget the fruit Jell-O?"  
  
"Mmm, it *is* delicious," Jessie said between bites.  
  
"But da best part," Meowth said, "is dat we made it 'ta da food without gettin' our cheeks pinched!"   
  
"Good old family unity," James said, and headed back for more potato salad.  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
The sky was becoming darker, the air was growing colder, and a soft breeze was wisping over the park as day turned to night.  
  
Jessie, James and Meowth were beginning to notice that many of the rides were closing already as the sky grew darker, and they sat on a bench and again began to study the park map.  
  
"Well," Jessie was saying, "I think we'll have to look at the rides and see what's still open." She folded the map and placed it in the bag. "The map doesn't say anything about how late the rides stay open."  
  
"Yeah," James agreed. They all stood and began to walk again.  
  
"Hmmm...we could go on— oh, wait, closed 30 minutes ago..." James kept looking around.  
  
" Da Spiral Coaster's still open," Meowth told them. The other two just shook their heads and didn't respond. "Well? It is!"  
  
"Meowth," Jessie said, waving them on, "I *still* haven't recovered from that ride. Let's not go on it again."  
  
They soon came up to another ride that none of them had seen yet. It had seta of 3 seats that rotated at the end of 3 large rotating arms. The middle of the arms would move around, sending the seats spinning in circles over and over again.  
  
Meowth seemed quite interested in this ride. "Hmmm...I've seen this before..."  
  
"It looks like it could be fun," Jessie said as she watched the ride in action.  
  
"Well, would you look at that," James said, his arms folded in a prideful way. "You wanna ride the 'Barf Bucket', I see." He had a curious smile on his face.  
  
"This is the 'Barf Bucket'?!" Jessie asked in surprise.  
  
"Yeah...see for yourself."  
  
"Well, the sign says so; but somehow, I expected...more."  
  
"Oh, well. I guess now that you know it's true identity, you don't want to ride it," James said.  
  
"Well...I guess we could. It looks harmless, anyway. And the names are always over- exaggerated on these rides."  
  
"Yeah! Yeah, dat's da ticket! Let's get in line, come on!" Meowth told them eagerly.  
  
Jessie and James both shrugged.  
  
"Sure...but it's not *that* exciting, Meowth," Jessie said.  
  
"You bet it is," Meowth said deviously.  
  
The three entered the line, which was moving pretty quickly, and they watched as the 'Barf Bucket' went about 2 more times before it was their turn.  
  
"Who sits with who?" Meowth asked suddenly when it was nearly their turn.  
  
"Guess it doesn't matter," James said. A smile came over Meowth's face.  
  
"Ok den, you two sit together."  
  
"Sure..."  
  
Meowth's grin grew even more evil.  
  
They were admitted into the ride's loading area and found their seats. Jessie and James sat in a green one, James on the inside, and Meowth found an orange one that was connected to a different arm.  
  
"Why are you all the way over there, Meowth?" James yelled.  
  
"Ah, I just wanna be able ta watch ya guys suffer!"  
  
"Uh...."  
  
The ride began to move slowly, the arms lifting slightly and rotating. It gained speed and within a few seconds, it was really starting to go fast.  
  
For some reason, it hadn't occurred to James or Jessie what they had gotten themselves into.  
  
James slid out towards Jessie as the ride picked up speed.  
  
"Scoot over, James! Stay on your side," Jessie told him.   
  
  
"I'm—trying," James told her, "but there's too much force! It's too fast!"  
  
"Oh, no. . . the force *is* too strong...I'm being crushed over here, and I can hardly move!"  
  
And so, the ride thus became a nauseating battle of James trying to hang on and not squish Jessie, and Jessie, in the midst of this, trying to push James back so he could grab onto the other side.   
  
"James, just—hold tighter...!"  
  
"Can't—"  
  
Soon, their peril turned into both Jessie and James falling into a fit of giggles as they were hurled uncontrollably, James unable to go on any longer and ramming into Jessie. She, too, gave up on pushing him away, and let her shoulder go numb as it was pressed hard against the side of the seat.  
  
At long last, Jessie and James could feel their seat slow, and the stress on them receded. James found that he was able to move a little again.  
  
"'K, James..." Jessie said, "you can scoot back to your side now."  
  
"Rather not...I'm pretty comfy here." He was still leaning on Jessie.  
  
Jessie sighed, thinking of *shoving* James back to his side, but then deciding against it.  
  
They stopped moving, and Jessie opened the lock on their seat. She and James stumbled out.  
  
"Well, it would seem that Meowth was trying to fool us into sitting together so I'd get crunched," Jessie said as they met up with the cat. He was looking quite green.  
  
"I 'tink I'm gonna th-row up," he remarked, swaying as he walked.  
  
"Heh, too bad you went on the ride alone, Meowth," James said. "At least I had a pillow to cushion me from all the jolty spinning."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, 'ya win, already," Meowth said, looking greener every minute.  
  
"You had a pillow, James, but pillows have feelings, too," Jessie remarked, massaging her aching shoulder.  
  
"Sorry," James said with a slightly red face.  
  
"Well, looks like the 'Barf Bucket' got the better of Meowth," Jessie said as they watched him run for the nearest bathroom.  
  
"Serves him right," James muttered. "It would seem that we were the only ones to make it out alive..." he went on dramatically. "No hurling for us!"  
  
"Well, James— if you're feeling so brave, than maybe you're ready for a real challenge," Jessie said, playing along with he jest, "let's try— the Ferris Wheel!!"  
  
James put his hands to his mouth in mock astoundment. "No....no....anything but...the Ferris Wheel!"  
  
Jessie found herself giggling.  
  
"Seriously— why don't we, James?" Jessie leaned against a tree, looking over the giant wheel.  
  
"Sure, if it's open...and, if it's not too much for you, that is."  
  
Jessie smiled, and nudged James playfully as they walked off.  
  
  
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~  
  
  
"I can't believe that cat was too sick to even go on a Ferris Wheel," James commented, standing in line by Jessie. She shrugged.  
  
"Who knows. Pokemon are odd creatures, and Meowth is no exception to the rule. He's odder than most, might I add."  
  
"He would've complained, anyway," James said. "He's good at finding something to whine about."  
  
"He's more like you than I thought, then," ventured Jessie. James shot her a semi-hurt look, but she patted him on the shoulder, saying, "But it's kinda cute, to be honest..."  
  
The sun was down behind distant mountains, and now twinkling stars shown through a veil of dark sky.  
  
"We're next," James said. They moved up to the front of their line and leaned against the gate, waiting.  
  
  
The wheel spun about halfway around, then stopped. An employee began to open different gates, boarding people into circular, bowl-shaped seats. A bench inside the bowl circled all around the inside , a plastic parasol covered it, and a sheel in the center of the bowl could be turned to rotate the bowls.  
  
A lady came up to Jessie and James and opened their gate, directing them to their seat.  
  
"Please, no spitting or throwing objects," she was saying as she locked the door to their bowl. "You may stop at any time and possibly be up there for a full 20 minutes. Enjoy the ride!" She smiled and walked away.  
  
The ride didn't start immediately, but after a couple of minutes, it finally began its ascent.   
  
James sat back on one side of the seat, his arms around the back of the bench, while Jessie sat across from him on the other side. She tried to sit back and be comfortable.  
  
"Hm...there's a lot a vandalism on this thing," Jessie said, trying to break the quiet moment with some thin conversation.  
  
"Yeah. Guess people get bored up here, and it's not like you'd get caught....especially if you *were* stuck at the top for 20 minutes." James was looking at the wheel in the center of their bench, which was covered in names and initials among other writing. "Here— hand me something sharp."  
  
Jessie reached into the bag and withdrew a pocket knife. She handed it to James.  
  
James began to scratch into the white paint of the wheel, making a slight scraping noise as he did. A minute later, he looked up again.  
  
"Aw, see? Now I'll never be forgotten." He turned the wheel, the whole bowl rotating with it, so that Jessie could see where had carved his name. It simply read "James".  
  
"Very nice," she told him.  
  
"Why don't you add a "+ Jessie" under it or something?" James asked with a smile.  
  
"I dunno, James," she answered, "I know you're nuts, but I don't want to— well, *imply* anything."  
  
Silence pierced the air as they circled around for the second time. The wheel slowed, and stopped about half way to the top.  
  
It was very strange that there was such a tense silence between them. James tried to look out at the scenery, but his head shot right back.  
  
"Jess," he asked suddenly through the quiet, "why have you been so nice to me today? I mean, no fans, mallets, anything." Jessie was looking at him now. "I know I've gone a bit over the line, but...but...well, you didn't stop me, and you always have before."  
  
Jessie bit her lip, looking almost like she'd love to run away at that moment. But she couldn't.  
  
"Because I...I didn't..." Jessie stopped. Another silence. James waited, his eyes still questioning.  
  
"Because," she continued at last, "I was tired of seeing you get hurt, because you're the last person to deserve it." She looked away as soon as she had said it.  
  
"You didn't...want to hurt me?" asked James, leaning a bit forward. "You really didn't want to hurt me?" His face seemed concerned, but there was a twinkle behind those green eyes.  
  
Silence. The wheel started up again.  
  
"If you don't want to talk about it," James began, but he never finished his sentence.  
  
"James," Jessie said as though it were painful, "I always act like I hate being with you, beating you up and stuff, taking charge...but I don't hate you. It's more the opposite." She almost smiled. "I guess...you could say...I like you more than I let on..."  
  
The ride stopped after turning around once more, at the very top of the wheel.  
  
James seemed thoughtful as he sat there, looking at the floor. Jessie seemed nervous, and she tried to stop her eyes from staring at James.  
  
"Jess," James said, looking up, "maybe I shouldn't, but I think I can clear things up...can I do something I've been dying to do for a very long time?" He was staring at he face eagerly.  
  
"Yeah, sure, I guess," Jessie replied. She looked almost embarrassed.   
  
"Ok. But you have to promise that you'll close your eyes when I do it and you won't try to stop me."  
  
"Uh, ok..."  
  
"Close your eyes," James told her. She submitted.  
  
James leaned forward, touching his hand to her soft cheek, and kissed her on the lips.  
  
He pulled away. Jessie was staring at him, obviously surprised, though looking somewhat satisfied.  
  
James smiled at her. "Thanks," he said.  
  
  
Jessie smiled, and scooted over the his side. She threw her arms around him.  
  
"Thanks?" she said quietly. "No, thank *you*. Thank you, James, for breaking the ice I've been slipping on all day." They looked at one another, nearly laughing, and James put his arm around Jessie.   
  
"I think we're seeing eye-to-eye now," James said. He turned the wheel with his free hand so they were looking over the lights and sights of the park below them.  
  
"You're not as shy as I thought, James, really," Jessie said. "I didn't know if I wanted you flirting with me and stuff because you'd never really done it before...but then, today I realized that I like that side of you. I like you a lot more when you're not cowering in fear from a mallet...you're a lot of fun." She rested her head on his shoulder gently. "Thanks for being so bold, James."  
  
"My pleasure," he told her. They both grinned.  
  
The Ferris wheel circled again.  
  
Jessie eyed the wheel right in from of them, and James' name on it.  
  
"James," Jessie spoke after several minutes, "will you hand me that pocket knife?"  
  
James mocked concern. "Don't do it, Jessie! Suicide isn't the answer...and just after I tell you how I feel about you."  
  
Jessie shook her head, taking the knife.  
  
She leaned over and scratched something into the wheel. When she sat up, they both looked at what she had written:  
  
James  
+  
Jessie  
=  
Forever  
  
"That's more like it," James said, "and all it took was a kiss."  
  
Jessie leaned back into his arms again.  
  
As the ride started again, it went around one more time, then slowed as it reached the bottom.  
  
An employee came and let them out of their bench.  
  
Jessie and James, arms around one another's waists, exited the ride, both considerably more happy than when they had entered.  
  
"So, Jess," James said, "Whaddaya say we buy a frozen lemonade to share before we find Meowth?"  
  
Jessie nodded, still smiling. "Fantastic idea."  
  
The two merged into a throng of people and disappeared into the crowded midway.  
  
  
~`~`~  
High above the mid-way lights  
High above the rides, you, me and the sky  
The whole world looks small tonight  
And you said that we could never really fly  
  
Well if you're right and we're nothing at all  
Tell me why did I keep thinking 'bout you calling  
If you're right and we're nothing at all  
Tell me why do you keep thinking that you're falling  
  
Swaying, sighing at the skywheel top  
Then you say that I can never make you mine  
Well lights, rings, constellations turn and stop  
Kiss me once again and change your mind  
  
If you're right and we're nothing at all  
Tell me why did I keep thinking 'bout you calling  
If you're right and we're nothing at all  
Tell me why do you keep thinking that you're falling.  
  
~`~`~  
  
  
~`~`~`~`~`  
The End  
~`~`~`~`~`  
  
  
  
____________________________________________________________________________  
  
Ok, I know this was a bit different than my usual stories. I tried writing it in a sorta different style this time, so if you liked it or hated it, let me know. I wasn't totally happy with it, and I may yet go back and change things a bit, but this is it for now. Please leave reviews! Thanks!   
  
Also, the song lyrics at the end are 'Falling' by Semisonic. They seemed to fit the story , even though it's not a songfic. --StarGlider  
  
____________________________________________________________________________  



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